Bishop Robert C. Morlino talks to the crowd gathered on the sidewalk outside the Planned Parenthood Clinic on Madison's east side during the pro-life vigil for an end to abortion. (Catholic Herald photo by Kat Wagner)
The following article appeared in the August 30, 2007 edition of the Madison Catholic Herald, regarding the Diocese of Madison Seminarian's annual Respect Life Vigil.
MADISON -- The vigil outside the eastside clinic where abortions are performed was as peaceful a witness to the desire to end abortion as the silent reminder on the billboard opposite the clinic that reads "Defend Life."
People entering the Planned Parenthood Clinic either stared at those gathered for the vigil, especially during the talk by Bishop Robert C. Morlino and the rosary that followed, or they avoided eye contact. Occasionally passing drivers would heckle, beep their horns, or offer crude gestures.
But those at the vigil, some sitting in lawn chairs and others standing or kneeling, simply held their beads or pro-life signs and continued in the spirit of prayer.
"We're not here in a spirit of human combat," Bishop Morlino said. "We're here in a spirit of spiritual combat, which from our point of view is always a spirit of peace."
The vigil was organized by intern Scott Emerson with the Diocese of Madison Office of Vocations and associate director Tom Nelson of the Office of Justice and Pastoral Outreach.
The prayer outside the clinic off of Stoughton Rd. was held simultaneous with Eucharistic Adoration at nearby St. Peter Parish and a prayer walk from Holy Redeemer Parish downtown, which was organized by pro-life members of that parish.
Still solidly pro-life
This year is the fourth year the vigil was held, but, unlike previous years when the vigil would span the course of the night, it was planned for the daylight hours over two days.
The crowd was at least 40 thick for more than an hour during the second day and included not only 12 priests and several seminarians but also laypeople of all ages from around the diocese. They squeezed onto the public space of the sidewalk and the grass beside the road in order to hear the bishop's talk and pray the rosary with him.
At other times the vigil crowd was sparser, though there were always at least two seminarians present to carry on the prayer.
The vigil, said Msgr. Jim Bartylla, director of the Office of Vocations, was an opportunity not only to be faithful, but also to bring the crime against the unborn at Planned Parenthood and the Catholic belief in the dignity of life to the forefront of people's thoughts.
Especially with the bishop present, it provided a symbol to strengthen people to continue the fight, he said: "I think it helps people to know the church is still solidly pro-life, and we're going to remain visibly committed to that."
The vigil also served as an opportunity to train the seminarians, he said. "The concrete nature of watching people go in and come out of the clinic . . . it's a very pastoral moment for seminarians to see the pain and death that goes on daily in society."
Society of violence
"More and more people are tending to solve their anger or their disappointment of the failure in their life by killing somebody," Bishop Morlino said in his talk. "When we do that, we create a society of incredible violence."
"I really believe that it all started with abortion," he said. "Because death was invisible, because the massacre was invisible and we didn't see it, we took it for granted and that's the start of the slippery slope."
Abortion, the bishop said, hurts women because it turns the womb into a tomb.
"It's death-dealing to the baby, but it's also death-dealing to the mother, insofar as she is a woman, because it deprives her of her womanhood and creates a mind-body split," he said.
"So let's pray for the women who are tempted to abortion and who have abortions today in a special way," the bishop said, "not seeking to condemn, but hoping that they would be invited to grow in truth of their own womanhood and hoping that, if they have had an abortion, they would never hesitate to turn to the loving mercy of God."
Members of 40 Days for Life Madison participated in the Vigil, covering the night hours when the Seminarians were not present.
It would seem the Vigil had some positive fruits. A couple of the 40 Days for Life crew were present at the abortion center before it opened during the 7:00 a.m. hour on August 16th. Although no signs were being held and vigil participants did not aggressively engage the young women entering the Planned Parenthood, one couple did stop by the center before it opened, as they had a morning appointment to schedule an abortion.
After about 15 minutes of waiting, the young man who drove to Planned Parenthood with his girlfriend left his car and came up to those of us who were praying outside the abortion center, asking about why we were out there. After talking with the young man for a few minutes, he revealed that they had drove from out of town to schedule an abortion. He did not really want to go through with the abortion, but his girlfriend thought they should.
Although we were a little unprepared, we did have a good conversation with young man, and we talked to him about the nearby CareNet Pregnancy Center. He seemed excited to hear about alternative care that was available outside of an abortion, so he and his girlfriend left the facility, apparently intending to go to CareNet for service instead. We later received confirmation that a young couple did stop by CareNet that morning.
Of course, it may not be possible to know the ending of this story. But we trust in the love and mercy of God. We hope there will be many more stories like this during the 40 Days for Life throughout the country. Sometimes, just being there for someone to talk to in a peaceful and non-judgemental way, can make a huge difference in helping a young couple handle what is certainly a very difficult situation, and not make a decision they will later regret.
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